As told to Jonathan Foreman...
To my fellow citizens
I would like to apologise for the role I have played in the dismantling of the United Kingdom.
I am sure there is little need for me to tell you that I never dreamed that my Prime Ministership would be the Union’s last, or that I would be the person ultimately responsible for the needless destruction of one of the most successful polities in the history of Europe and indeed the world.
However, I must take responsibility for what has happened.
First of all, the blame is mine for allowing the referendum question to be worded in a way that inevitably favoured the secessionist cause. As is obvious now, I should have insisted on wording such as: 'Do you think Scotland should leave the United Kingdom?' or 'Should Scotland remain part of the United Kingdom?'
Unfortunately my career in television PR and then at the top of Conservative politics gave me little training in the art of negotiation. I now accept that I should have sent a more able and experienced negotiator to wrangle with a politician as accomplished as Alex Salmond.
To my shame I must also confess that, before those negotiations, it had been suggested that my government seek advice from colleagues in Canada and elsewhere who had successfully defeated similar referendums and separatist movements. I declined to follow that advice, underestimating as I did the urgency and importance of the question of Scottish secession.
It was also, as the referendum results make all too clear, deeply foolish of me to agree to Alex Salmond’s demand that teenagers be allowed to vote in the referendum. It did not occur to me at the time that the only 16- and 17-year-olds likely to take part in such a vote would be passionate nationalists, and that I might be dooming the cause of the Union.
It is true that Conservative modernisers and my long-time image consultants were adamant on this question, but in the end the decision was mine. It was unforgivably trivial and short-sighted of me to put the future of the UK at risk for the chance of a slight improvement in our brand image among young people.
All I can say in my defence is that at the time our pollsters said it was highly unlikely that the nationalists would ever have a real chance of winning.
However, there is no excuse for the lack of seriousness, effort and thought that I and my cabinet put into the referendum until too late in the day.
Whatever the future may hold for an independent Scotland, there is no question that the immediate prospect for England, Wales and Northern Ireland is a dismaying and difficult one.
On top of negotiating borders and finances with Scotland, we face the complicated and costly task of reshaping thousands of public and private institutions to fit our truncated country. We must restore international confidence in the remains of the UK even as we come to terms with a radical change in our national identity.
Much as I hope to play my own part in indeed in rebuilding British nationhood, and persuading investors and institutions around the world that Britain is still a safe and stable place to do business, I feel it would be wrong to do so while holding the office of Prime Minister.
I therefore resign that office, and also announce my intention to stand down as Member of Parliament for Witney.
I extend my humblest apologies to her Majesty, to my fellow citizens and to all who put their faith in me as a leader.
David Cameron